Controlling The Cassava Mealybug: ICAR-NBAIR’s biological control restored cassava production in South India
To prevent the spread of cassava mealybug, NBAIR trained farmers, agricultural scientists and government officials. The first field release was conducted on March 7, 2022 at Yethapur, Salem, Tamil Nadu, in which more than 300 farmers participated. Subsequently, the parasite was released at more than 500 locations across South India.
A destructive pest found in South America, Cassava Mealybug (Phenacoccus manihoti), reached India in April 2020 and severely impacted the country’s cassava production. The pest was first observed in Kerala and then spread to other major cassava producing areas including Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
Due to this infection, more than 1.43 lakh hectares of area was affected. Due to which the production declined by 50-85 percent. Yields in key areas like Salem and Namakkal dropped from 20-25 tonnes per hectare to 5-12 tonnes per hectare.
Need for biological control
Urgent steps were needed to control the cassava mealybug. Earlier, this invasive species had no natural predators in India, so ICAR-National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources (NBAIR), Bengaluru started looking for a solution. In collaboration with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Benin, NBAIR imported an exotic parasite Anagyrus lopezi (Encyrtidae: Hymenoptera).
Anagyrus lopezi: A biological warrior against mealybug
The parasite was brought to India in August 2021 and NBAIR conducted quarantine studies to check its safety and efficacy. After successful testing, it was mass produced and planned to be released in the fields.
Training and field release for farmers
To prevent the spread of cassava mealybug, NBAIR trained farmers, agricultural scientists and government officials. The first field release was conducted on March 7, 2022 at Yethapur, Salem, Tamil Nadu, in which more than 300 farmers participated. Subsequently, the parasite was released at more than 500 locations across South India.
Successful results and increased production
Due to the self-sustaining nature of Anagyrus lopezi, it worked quickly and caused a sharp decline in the mealybug population. This again improved cassava production. In 2023-24, yields again reached 20-25 tonnes per hectare in Salem, Namakkal and Dharmapuri districts of Tamil Nadu, which was at par with the pre-outbreak levels.
Benefits to small farmers
This biological control effort restored the livelihoods of thousands of small farmers. These initiatives proved to be environmentally friendly and cost-effective. Farmers no longer had to rely on chemical pesticides, which also reduced their production costs.
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